The Perfect Gift by Emma Hannigan

Happy Birthday, darling girl...

Ever since she can remember, Roisin has received a birthday card in the post. Signed with love from the birth mother she has never met. 

Brought up by her adoptive parents, Keeley and Doug, Roisin has wanted for nothing. But on her thirtieth birthday a letter comes that shakes her world.

For Keeley, who's raised Roisin as her own, the letter reminds her of a secret she's been holding for thirty years.

And for Nell, keeping watch in the lighthouse, the past is a place she rarely goes. Until a young runaway arrives seeking shelter, and unwraps the gift of hope for them all...

I have read and loved every one of Emma Hannigan’s books but having just finished reading her new release The Perfect Gift I have a new book on the top spot as this is by far her best book yet.

The storyline has two threads to it, the first follows Roisin and her adoptive family who are all having a difficult time in their lives and Roisin looks like she is about to lose her business and whilst emotions are running high her thoughts turn to her birth mother who died when she was a baby and the only thing she has is a birthday card sent to her each year on her birthday but she feels like a piece of her is missing and she wants answers. The second thread follows the reclusive and unsociable Nell who lives in the lighthouse away from everyone and everything, just the way she likes it until a young girl turns up on her doorstep with nowhere to go and something sparks in Nell to take her in. 

Both threads become entwined towards the last part of the book and I was in complete shock when the link was revealed and looking back now I can’t see how I missed it but it was a pleasant surprise to have the wool pulled over my eyes!

I love books that feature the creating and day to day running of a shop so this book was the perfect read for me. All the delicious mouth-watering treats that were available in Nourriture played havoc with my cravings.

This was a poignant read but I also found it quite uplifting too because although emotions are running high with all our characters as they find themselves in trying times they are all very supportive characters and are keen to help each other. I actually found Mouse a very refreshing character who was determined to turn her life around but also eager to draw Nell out of her comfort nest too.

There was a lovely splash of romance too which rounded this book of beautifully, yes it was a little predictable when it came to the romance side of the book but this really didn’t matter. The author covers a range of delicate issues in this book but she addresses each of them tenderly and which left me feeling so much compassion for the characters.

This was Emma Hannigan’s most touching read yet the last couple of chapters really brought a lump to my throat and although I didn’t want the book to end, the ending was beautifully wrapped up. I am sure this will be the authors bestselling book yet, I know I will be recommending this book to all my clients at work this week!

Available on Kindle 18th Feb and Paperback 28th July.

The Secrets We Share by Emma Hannigan

Clara Conway is a woman with secrets. But consequently, Clara's family is falling apart. Her son Max emigrated to the US years ago and she has yet to meet her teenage granddaughter, Nathalie...because Max and his mother no longer speak. Meanwhile Clara's daughter Ava is fighting for a piece of happiness. When Clara unexpectedly reaches out to Nathalie and her niece comes to visit, Ava's thoughts turn to Max, the brother she loved and lost. The brother whose abrupt disappearance left the Conway family heartbroken. When Nathalie finds a pile of torn, faded letters, she unlocks the door to Clara's past. Can Nathalie's time with her grandmother start to right some very old wrongs? And can Clara find a way to reach out to Max and thereby begin to heal the whole family once more? After all, some secrets are meant to be shared...

Emma Hannigan is a very talented author and I look forward to her new releases, so as soon as The Secrets We Share arrived on my doormat I had to start this one straight away the synopsis sounded promising.

The storyline is told in the present time and also jumps back in time too and this part is delivered in the form of letters which worked beautifully. Clara has secrets and she feels it is time to reunite her family and share the secrets, as she begins to make the connection with her son Max she learns that she has a granddaughter Nathalie who she has never met.

Nathalie has had some tragic news and she is not coping at all and is going off the rails until she returns home one day drunk and her mum can’t take it anymore and decides to send her to Ireland to stay with family she has never met.

As secrets are uncovered will this tear the family further apart or will it help to make amends?

This book has such a wonderful group of characters, they are all flawed but they feel so normal and down to earth so it was hard not to get drawn into their problems. Through all of their faults I still loved each and every one of the characters and I was longing for them to come together as a family and put the past behind them and enjoy the future together. Clara was such a joy to meet she was everything you expect from a grandma, wise, loving, fun and informative and just takes things as they come. Nathalie was also a loveable character although she was understandably hurting it was great to see her grow as a character in her time in Ireland she was very inquisitive and a soft natured character and she really was the string that brought everyone together.

The revelation that we uncover surrounding Ava really hit me and broke my heart, we pick up that there is something from her past that is preventing her from settling down and enjoying life but U would never have guessed what really happened. This part of the book particularly was handled very delicately and it really does pull at the heart strings.

I always find split time scale books a bit hit and miss but I felt the author got the balance perfect in this book, I was equally as interested in both the past and the present storylines and I think this is helped by the way in which the past was written in the form of letters which kept things to the point and just made things a little different.

Yet again this author doesn’t disappoint she held my attention the whole way through this book and I didn’t want to leave these characters at the end. This was an endearing and yet somewhat uplifting read which seems strange to say after reading about such heart-breaking events but I think it is the love and bond of a family that gives you hope that things will be ok.

Paperback               Kindle

The Heart of Winter by Emma Hannigan

Holly Craig's family have lived happily in Huntersbrook for generations but when times grow hard, even she must admit defeat and sell off their once-successful stables. The three Craig children, Lainey, Joey and Pippa find themselves locked in a fight to keep their beloved Huntersbrook; dare they transform it into one of Ireland's most sought after countryside venues? Renovation work is well underway when life rears its ugly head and everything stops in its tracks. The Craig family is forced to reassess what matters and although they no longer live at Huntersbrook, can the house work its magic even so ... and lead them into the light once more?



I first discovered author Emma Hannigan last year when I was doing my yearly Christmas feature and I was sent a copy of Driving Home for Christmas which I loved and I have been read more books by her this year Perfect Wives and The Summer Guest and now I have just finished The Heart of Winter and I am quite sad it is over.

This book revisited our characters from Driving Home for Christmas and follows on with the families plan to open Huntersbrook House up to the public for venue hire. As the family pull together to get everything in place to make this venture work so they don't lose their family home, we begin to see what changes have occurred to Joey, Pippa and Lainey's private lives too.

I loved catching up with these characters and I was surprised how much they wound me up and made me want to throttle each one of them and yet I loved them at the same time! I think if people hadn't read the first book then their opinion of Joey may differ with just reading this book as he seems to have let his career go to his head in this book where as I thought he was a loving character in the previous book so having this background gave his character the benefit of the doubt. Typical Pippa is yet again unpredictable and a walking danger! But I like how her character progresses in this book. Lainey I really struggled with some points I wanted to hug her and I my heart went out to her then on other times she really got on my wick. Each chapter was alternated between each of the three siblings which worked really well for this book.

To add to this book we are also treated to an insight to the lovely Jodi from Perfect Wives who I loved and I was so pleased to see her arrival in this book and see what is going on in her life now.

This was a feel good read great for the cold winter nights ahead to sit and dissolve into this storyline. It reminds us that family should always be there for each other to pull each other through trying situations. There were some sensitive issues that were effecting our main characters and once again Emma manages to write about these in a delicate but informative way. 

I do think this book could be read as a stand alone but I do recommend reading Driving Home for Christmas so you can get to know the background of these characters. This is a book that has a lovely winter cover and a storyline with a touch of festivity but this book could be read any time of year. This is yet another winner for me from Emma Hannigan she has become a firm favourite of mine.

FESTIVE COVER

Festive Content      

Overall Review Rating

Kindle                    Paperback

The Summer Guest by Emma Hannigan

A little magic is about to come to sleepy Caracove Bay... Lexie and her husband Sam have spent years lovingly restoring No. 3 Cashel Square to its former glory. So imagine Lexie's delight when a stranger knocks on the door, asking to see the house she was born in over sixty years ago. Kathleen is visiting from America, longing to see her childhood home... and longing for distraction from the grief of losing her husband. And as Lexie and Sam battle over whether or not to have a baby and Kathleen struggles with her loss, the two women realise their unexpected friendship will touch them in ways neither could have imagined. In Caracove, there's more than a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

I have been in a reading slump for over a month now, no matter what book I was picking up I would read a chapter or so and then give up. I had The Summer Guest by Emma Hannigan come through the post this weekend and decided to give it a try as I loved the fresh Summery look to the cover and I know this authors books are usually cosy reads focusing on family and friendships so I was hoping this would get me out of my slump.

Lexie and Rob have a wonderful content life together. They have restored their home in Caracove Bay much to Lexie’s joy, when one day a letter arrives through their door from a lady called Kathleen who used to live in their house when she was younger and now that she is back for the Summer she was hoping to take a look at the house.

Kathleen is leaving America to return to Caracove Bay for the Summer for a trip down memory lane that her beloved husband booked for her.

With both women facing a difficult time ahead they soon form a great friendship and are a shoulder to lean on for each other.

This book has definitely got my reading mojo back! It was so strange that three of the characters Lexie, Rea and Dee had the same names as my sister, mum and I so it was quite strange reading this book! The characters were all such a great fun and loving bunch even if poor Lexie’s mum was rather pushy but her heart was in the right place!

Now I am going to have to do my first ever spoiler alert here because something that I loved about the book, I know after a discussion last week about characters who do not want children there are readers who get disappointed about the outcome so if this is you then read the spoiler if not then go down to the read again!! 

SPOILER ALERT!!!

I could really relate to Lexie which I think was another reason why I enjoyed the book so much. I have read so many books where a woman isn’t maternal and doesn’t want children but by the end of the book it is happy ever after and the woman has suddenly decided she now wants kids so it was great to read a book where the character actually sticks to her guns as not every woman does feel the need to have children.

YOU CAN LOOK AGAIN!!

The storyline flows at such a gentle pace and yet there is never a dull moment there is always something going on so you can’t lose interest in this book but the one thing that really got me I was quite happy strolling along in such a lovely storyline then BAM there was a shock revelation that I really didn’t see coming! I gasped and my husband actually jumped up as he thought something was wrong!

There was a lot of emotion in this book so it was quite sad but at the same time it was quite uplifting seeing the characters building friendships and taking a trek down memory lane as well as helping each other through trying times.

I loved this book and I am so pleased that it got me out of my reading slump, I will definitely be recommending this book especially to any Cathy Kelly or Maeve Binchy fans.

kindle                   paperback

Perfect Wives by Emma Hannigan

When actress Jodi Ludlum returns to the Dublin village of Bakers Valley to raise her young son, she's determined to shield him from the media glare that follows her in LA. But coming home means leaving her husband behind - and waking old ghosts... Francine Hennessy was born and raised in Bakers Valley. To all appearances, she is the model wife, mother, home-maker and career woman. But, behind closed doors, Francine's life is crumbling around her. As Jodi struggles to conceal her secrets and Francine faces some shocking news, the two become unlikely confidants. Suddenly having the perfect life seems less important than finding friendship, and the perfect place to belong...

I read my first Emma Hannigan book at Christmas and I loved her style of writing so I couldn’t wait to start another one, and I was lucky enough to be sent her new release Perfect Wives to read in exchange for an honest review so I soon picked it up and got lost in her storytelling.

The book focuses on two very different wives, Jodi Ludlum who is a well-known actress who is returning to her roots in Ireland to bring up her adorable son Saul whilst movie star husband stays in LA for work. Then we have Francine Hennessy who has always lived in Ireland, she has created a picture perfect life and family, bringing up 4 children whilst still working and keeping a house as well as finding time to hold coffee mornings and such for the school mums.

 What looks so perfect on the outside of both Jodi and Francine’s lives couldn’t be further than the truth, both of these women have secrets that they are keeping under wraps but as time moves on the trouble is rising to the surface, could these two ladies who couldn’t be further apart help each other out and realise the true meaning of friendship?

This book was such a delightful easy read. I found that I was actually quite judgmental at first as I assumed that with Jodi being a Hollywood actress, she would be the showy high all mighty type and that Francine would be the soft mummsy type and I was soon proved completely wrong both of the characters were not what I was expecting at all. I did find that I warmed more to Jodi but Francine’s story really hit a nerve for me and it was this that had me hooked all the way through. I don’t want to give anything away but the trouble with little Cameron really opened my eyes and even though I finished this book a few days ago now I am still finding that his situation is still on my mind so this is quite a thought provoking read.

Friendship is a big focus in this book alongside the Cameron issue as well as parenting issues and hidden pasts so there is a lot to keep you entertained. It is a thought provoking enjoyable read but this isn’t one that will have you laughing so if you are looking for a light breezy read then this one isn’t for you.  My only one negative I can say with this book is that I did feel like the ending was a little rushed but in all honesty this could be because I was so wrapped up in the storyline and I didn’t want this to end.

Yet another great read from Emma Hannigan, I now cannot wait for her next book The Summer Guest to be released.

Kindle           Paperback